(CN) — Spain was roiled Wednesday by violent far-right and nationalist protests against an attempt by acting Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to remain in power by granting amnesty to Catalan politicians and activists.
On Tuesday night, large protests outside the national headquarters of the Socialist party in Madrid turned violent as police and demonstrators clashed. By Wednesday morning, Spanish authorities said 29 officers and 10 protesters had been injured and six people arrested.
The scenes on the streets of Madrid showed angry crowds waving Spanish flags raging against ranks of police near the Socialist headquarters in the center of the Spanish capital. The party's regional offices also have been besieged by protests.
In Madrid, some demonstrators sang fascist Franco-era chants and made Nazi salutes, though the majority appeared to be right-wing nationalists angry over Sánchez's amnesty promise. It was the fifth night of demonstrations and more protests were planned.
The demonstrations are backed by Spain's far-right Vox party and the Popular Party, the main center-right force. Leaders from both parties condemned Tuesday night's violence but vowed to carry on fighting the amnesty deal.
Santiago Abascal, Vox's fiery populist leader, has appeared at the protests and portrayed Sánchez's amnesty offer as a “coup” against the Spanish state. He accused Sánchez's interior minister for instigating Tuesday's violence. He views Catalan and Basque separatist leaders as criminals and has called for more protests.
Antonio “Tontxu” Rodríguez, a Socialist and secretary of state for justice, accused Santiago of fomenting “a full-fledged insurrection” by calling on Spanish police to defy orders to counter the protests, as reported by Spanish media.
After inconclusive elections in July, Sánchez is attempting to stay in power by accepting demands from Catalan regional political parties that want an amnesty for several hundred politicians and activists facing legal action in connection to the failed and illegal 2017 Catalonia independence drive.
Most prominent among those seeking amnesty is Carles Puigdemont, a former Catalan president who fled to Belgium after Spanish authorities outlawed and cracked down on an independence referendum in 2017. His right-wing Together for Catalonia party holds only seven seats in the Spanish Parliament, but it is key to Sánchez's chances of winning an investiture vote and remaining in power.
Sánchez is trying to form a coalition with the backing of the far-left Sumar party and a collection of Basque and Catalan separatist parties. His Spanish Socialists Workers' Party, or PSOE, is the longtime mainstay center-left force.
In a message on social media, Sánchez slammed the protesters as anti-democratic and vowed they will not “be able to intimidate a party with 144 years of history.”
But Sánchez's efforts to strike a deal with Catalan separatists is not only facing resistance from the streets and opposition on the right. Spanish judges are challenging the amnesty deal, too, and opening criminal investigations against Catalan separatists.
On Monday, Spain’s highest judicial authority, the General Body of the Judicial Power, declared the proposed amnesty “a “measure to abolish the rule of law” in violation of the constitution. This judicial authority appoints judges and is controlled by conservatives.
Fernando Grande-Marlaska, Spain's interior minister, blasted the judicial authority for “constitutional disloyalty” because it had taken a position “without knowing the text” of the proposed amnesty law.
Also Monday, the high court in Madrid handling a terrorism investigation against a secretive Catalan separatist platform known as Democratic Tsunami said it was expanding its probe to include Puigdemont and Marta Rovira, a high-ranking official with the Republican Left of Catalonia, a left-wing Catalan party. The court accused Puigdemont of playing a leading role in the group.
Democratic Tsunami came into existence in 2019 and began organizing demonstrations and actions, such as the occupation of the Barcelona airport in October 2019, to protest the prosecution of Catalan independence leaders. In 2019, several Catalan leaders were given harsh sentences for sedition and misuse of public funds, though Sánchez pardoned them in 2021.
Both the Popular Party and Vox have vowed to oppose any amnesty law in Parliament and challenge it before the Constitutional Court.
This week's judicial moves may present serious obstacles for Sánchez's plans and give Puigdemont more reason to worry he could remain at risk of prosecution even if an amnesty is passed into law. The self-exiled Catalan politician, who was elected in Spain to serve as a member of the European Parliament, has described Spain's judicial powers as deploying “lawfare” against him.
On Wednesday, Puigdemont and the Socialists said they were in intense talks and that a deal was still on the table. Sánchez, a politician with an ability to survive setbacks, has until Nov. 27 to form a government and avoid a new round of elections.
Courthouse News reporter Cain Burdeau is based in the European Union.
Follow @cainburdeau
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